Remember that awkward middle school dance where you stood by the punch bowl, wishing you had the moves (and the guts) to strut across the floor? Yeah, online marketing without a good page builder can feel a lot like that – all potential, zero pizazz.
Sure, you might squeeze out a sale or two with elbow grease and grit, but crafting truly magnetic landing pages that draw in leads and make your commissions sing? You’d need duct tape, a prayer, and maybe a time machine back to when disco was cool.
But fear not, affiliate newbies!
Enter the glorious realm of page builders, your digital Dreamweavers whipping up stunning, persuasive landing pages that convert clicks into cash like nobody’s business. But with two big names throwing down in the arena – HBA Funnel Builder and ClickFunnels – who gets your vote when you’re just starting out? Let’s grab some popcorn and unpack their punch, feature by feature:
First, My Quick Affiliate Marketing Story
Ever since I discovered that you could build residual income from home, I was hooked, but it was a bit of a journey to finally find the best place to be. I tried different methods, such as direct sales and network marketing. My first year I made no money and 4 years later I was only earning $1,000 a month.
Then I discovered sales funnels and online marketing. A sales funnel is simply an automated sales process that allows people to find you online and then be educated on a product, business or service, so they can buy.
I was intrigued by this idea, but I also faced a challenge: how to create a website that can attract and convert visitors into buyers. I had no coding skills, no design skills, and no clue how to create a sales funnel.
That’s when I learned about page builder tools. Page builder tools are software that allow you to create professional-looking web pages without writing any code. You can simply drag and drop elements, such as headlines, images, buttons, and forms, and customize them to your liking. You can also use templates and examples to get inspiration and save time.
I decided to give page builder tools a try, and I was amazed by the results. I was able to create landing pages, sales pages, and thank you pages in minutes. I was able to test different variations and optimize them for conversions. I was able to integrate them with email marketing tools so I could build an email list.
I was able to launch my first sales funnel and reach my very first success from home, which was becomming the #1 recruiter and earner in my network marketing company. My mind was officially blown.
At the time, I was using a page builder that was provided to me by the online marketing system I was in, and to be honest, the features were super limited.
Thankfully, technology has advanced and today’s funnel builders are light years ahead of where I started.
2 of the most popular are the HBA Funnel Builder and Clickfunnels. In this blog post, I want to walk you through a quick rundown so you can get an idea of which one might be right for you.
What is HBA Funnel Builder?
HBA Funnel Builder is a tool created by the Home Business Academy, a platform that provides training and resources for online entrepreneurs. HBA Funnel Builder allows you to create unlimited pages, funnels, and websites for a low monthly fee of $25. You can also access a library of templates, a community of users, and a generous affiliate program that pays 80% commissions.
Some of the features of HBA Funnel Builder are:
- Drag and drop editor that is easy to use and flexible
- Responsive design that adapts to any device and screen size
- Custom domains and SSL certificates for branding and security
- Membership sites and courses for creating and selling digital products
- Pop-ups, timers, and countdowns for increasing urgency and conversions
- Integrations with email marketing tools, such as Aweber, GetResponse, and Mailchimp
- Integrations with payment processors, such as Stripe, PayPal, and ThriveCart
- Analytics and split testing for tracking and improving performance
- Support and training from the Home Business Academy team and community
What is Clickfunnels?
Clickfunnels is a tool created by Russell Brunson, a well-known online marketer and author. Clickfunnels allows you to create high-converting sales funnels for any type of product or service. You can also access a library of templates, a community of users, and a variety of training and coaching programs.
Some of the features of Clickfunnels are:
- Drag and drop editor that is easy to use and flexible
- Responsive design that adapts to any device and screen size
- Custom domains and SSL certificates for branding and security
- Membership sites and courses for creating and selling digital products
- Pop-ups, timers, and countdowns for increasing urgency and conversions
- Integrations with email marketing tools, such as Aweber, GetResponse, and Mailchimp
- Integrations with payment processors, such as Stripe, PayPal, and ThriveCart
- Analytics and split testing for tracking and improving performance
- Support and training from the Clickfunnels team and community
HBA Funnel Builder vs Clickfunnels: The Comparison
As you can see, both HBA Funnel Builder and Clickfunnels have similar features and benefits. They both allow you to create professional and effective sales funnels without any coding or design skills. They both have integrations, analytics, and support that can help you grow your online business.
But there are also some differences between them that you should consider before making your decision. Here are some of the main factors that I compared:
Let’s Start With Price: It’s All About The Benjamins Right?
- HBA Funnel Builder: Think ramen-friendly tunes. At $25/month, it’s the kind of deal that won’t make your instant noodles taste any sadder. Perfect for bootstrapping beginners who like to keep things lean and mean.
- ClickFunnels: Saddle up, because this ride costs a pretty penny. $97/month to $197/month will get you the goods, but for novices, it might feel like paying for a five-star resort when you’re still figuring out how to pitch a tent.
- Upsells:
- Both products have upsells but they’re optional. The major difference you’ll see with additional product pitches here is in the philosophy. With the HBA Funnel Builder, you’ll see the additional product upsells in the checkout process and after that, you’ll rarely if ever see random product launches. This is because the main focus of The Home Business Academy is to help people build long term, stable residual income and the founders believe that constant product launches are more distracting and hurtful to this goal than helpful.
- Another difference here is in price of the upsells. The company behind the HBA Funnel builder has more of a low ticket philosophy, whereas clickfunnels has more of a high ticket philosophy. In fact, Russel Brunson (the founder of clickfunnels) revealed in one of his books that his top package is a million bucks! DANG GINA!
So there you have it. In the price category, HBA Funnel Builder wins by Knockout.
Ease of Use: Grandma vs. Gandalf
Let’s be honest. If you’ve never built web pages, there will be some learning curve as you develop this new skill. That being said, there are differences in how steep of a learning curve stands between you and your lead generation, sales & marketing glory.
- HBA Funnel Builder: Imagine IKEA instructions written by your grandma. Drag-and-drop simplicity with pre-made templates for any kind of funnel you can dream up. It’s like building a Lego castle – even with two left thumbs, you’ll be crafting click-worthy masterpieces in no time.
- ClickFunnels: Think Gandalf guiding you through the treacherous Mines of Moria. The learning curve can be steeper, with more customization options and features that might leave newbies feeling a bit lost in the digital fog.
Both tools have a drag and drop editor that is easy to use and flexible. You can add and edit elements, such as headlines, images, buttons, and forms, with a few clicks. You can also use templates and examples to get inspiration and save time.
However, I found that HBA Funnel Builder has a simpler and more intuitive interface than Clickfunnels. HBA Funnel Builder has a few less super advanced options and features, which makes it less overwhelming and confusing. Clickfunnels has more crazy advanced options and features, which might make it a bit more powerful, but also more complicated and cluttered.
For example, HBA Funnel Builder has a single dashboard where you can access all your pages, funnels, and websites. You can also see the stats and performance of each funnel at a glance. Clickfunnels has multiple dashboards, such as the funnel dashboard, the website dashboard, and the backpack dashboard. You have to switch between them to access different functions and features.
Another example is the page editor. HBA Funnel Builder has a simple toolbar on the left side, where you can add and edit elements. You can also see a live preview of your page on the right side. Clickfunnels has a more complex toolbar on the top, where you can access different settings and options. You can also see a live preview of your page on the bottom, but you have to scroll down to see it.
Overall, I found that HBA Funnel Builder is easier to use and navigate than Clickfunnels. It has a cleaner and more user-friendly design that is suitable for beginners and intermediate users. Clickfunnels is more advanced and sophisticated, but also more challenging and confusing.
Features & Training
It’s been a few years since I used Clickfunnels but I can tell you a few things that might be relevant.
First off, the training. When we used clickfunnels back in the day, there was zero training included in the product purchase. In fact, at the time, they were selling an $8,000 certification course that my business partner purchased so he could learn the ins and outs of the product.
Whenever I had a question, I’d ask him.
The HBA Funnel builder on the other hand, includes the Funnel Builder’s Academy with the purchase, which is a step by step archive of training videos that teach you everything you need to know from building your first funnel, to using the more advanced features like membership sites and shopping cart integrations.
As far as features go… let’s talk about about one of the first things you’ll need as an online marketer, auto-responder integrations so you can build an email list.
Neither platform includes this as a part of the cost.
The HBA Funnel builder recommends inegration with one of the top, proven auto responder platforms like GetResponse or Aweber. (Yes there are other options).
Clickfunnels can also integrate with these auto responder platforms, but seems to learn more toward the $297 monthly option so you can setup your own email server.
When it comes to just getting started in online marketing, HBA Funnel builder is more budget friendly and user friendly here as well.
Beyond email marketing, you’ll really want to ask yourself what additional features you’ll need from a funnel builder platform.
What good is having a million bells and whistles, if you’re not gonna use them right?
For the VAST majority of online marketers, HBA Funnel Builder has everything you’ll need to build & run your online marketing business.
- Domain integration with Free SSL certificate
- Lightning fast loading pages
- Auto responder integration
- Split testing
- Timers
- Upsells & Downsells
- Membership sites
- Merchant integration
- Calendar
- Templates
- Replicated pages for your team
And while Clickfunnels has many of these features as well, the point is, if you can get the same features for less, why would you choose to pay more?
One feature that clickfunnels has that people seem to like is the share funnels feature. This is where you can share a link to a funnel you’ve created and it will load up in someone elses clickfunnels account.
While HBA Funnel builder does not have this feature, it has a couple other options.
- You can create replicated pages that change the join/buy button links based on the affiliate/rep ID in the page URL. (This way, you can make a page that your team can use without even having to have a funnel builder account). When we used clickfunnels before, we had to hire a programmer to build this option into our pages.
- If you’re a leader with some results, you can submit your funnel to The Home Business Academy and they can load your template up into the templates section, for your team to be able to use. Of course, just like with Clickfunnels share funnels feature, you’re team members will have to have an HBA Funnel Builders account to do this.
- You can easily create a training video to show your team how to load up an existing template from the templates library, and customize it to match a funnel you want them to have.
Support: Hand-Holding vs. Self-Reliance
- HBA Funnel Builder: Think friendly neighborhood therapist. Email and chat support are always there to lend a hand, and their knowledge base is packed with helpful tutorials and guides. They’ll even pat you on the back and tell you you’re doing great, even ifyour first funnel flops. They also have a weekly new members orientation, every Saturday where you can ask any question you have.
- ClickFunnels: Prepare for boot camp. While they offer extensive resources and a vibrant community forum, you’ll need to be a bit more self-sufficient to navigate the complexities of the platform.
Affiliate Program: Sharing the Spoils
- HBA Funnel Builder: They offer a 1 tier program with generous recurring commissions of a staggering 80%. This makes it so you can refer just one customer and have your funnel builder nearly free. 2 Referrals and you’re in profit. Each referral = $20 residual per customer. If you think lower cost product coupled with a higher commisison payout will be easier to sell, then this is the one for you.
- ClickFunnels: They offer a 1 tier program with a commission rate of 30%. Of course the price point is higher, so when you sell a $97 clickfunnels account, that equates to around $29 bucks residual. If you think it will be easier to sell a higher priced product, then maybe this is the route for you.
So, who comes away with the title?
Both HBA Funnel Builder and ClickFunnels are incredible tools, but the winner depends on your level and ambitions. Think of HBA as your supportive cheerleader, guiding you through the basics with a high five and a smile. They have more of a family feel with an atmosphere that’s much more friendly and helpful than competitive.
ClickFunnels is more like the drill sergeant, pushing you to your limits and driving you with contests, competition and status carrots.
My newbie recommendation? Start with HBA Funnel Builder. It’s less cost, more user friendly, has everything you need and will keep you on the path to building freedom by not being to hard on your pocketbook.
Now, over to you! Have you used either one of these tools? What’s your experience been like? Please share below so we can all learn from each other and help each other make the best decisions for our better futures!